Valley mourns loss of outdoors advocate Carlo Luri

Longtime trails advocate and Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce board member Minden resident Carlo Luri was remembered on Thursday not long after his sister Marina Luri-Clark posted the news of his death to Facebook.

“It is with a heavy heart and unimaginable sadness that I share the news of my brother's passing,” she posted on Wednesday. “We were on our way to Dana Farber Cancer Center (taking the train because he couldn't fly) but we never made it. He died peacefully last night surrounded by his family.”

Luri , 60, worked for the Bently family for 20 years, first for Bently Biofuels Co., where he managed plant operations until May 2013.

“We are all still in shock and deeply saddened by Carlo’s passing,” Christopher Bently said on Wednesday. “Carlo was always willing and able to do whatever was needed. His ingenuity was only outdone by his heart. He cared so much about people and the world we live in. I am so fortunate to have known and worked with Carlo all these years.”

Luri was diagnosed with late stage brain cancer in early December and was seeking treatment.

An avid outdoorsman, Luri joined 50 paddlers on a 65-mile trip around Lake Tahoe last July.

“I’ve always been interested in environmental issues,” he told R-C reporter Haley Estabrook. “When you’re aware of all the threats that are out there to our environment you care. I love that there are people out there doing science and coming up with ways to mitigate the problem. There is plastic pollution, invasive weeds and all sorts of issues that face the lake.”

He was a board member at large for the Carson Valley Trails Association, a member of Alta Alpina Cycling Club and a member of the Nevada Outdoor Business Coalition.

He attended the Trails Association barbecue in October.

He celebrated his 60^th birthday last month with a fundraising challenge for Carson Valley Trails Association, a cause he has been associated with from the beginning.

He held a bachelors of science degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University and a masters of business administration from the University of Nevada Reno, which he received in 2008 with a 4.0 grade point average.

Visit carsonvalleytrails.org or tahoe.ucdavis.edu/tahoesciencecenter to find out how to donate